I looked at Jeong Euijin steadily for a moment, then scanned him up and down without any particular reaction.
What caught my eye before the dark energy that had clouded his pupils was the simple fact that he was in far worse shape than I’d expected.
“You’re hurt all over. Are you okay?”
Everywhere my gaze landed, there were bloodstains that were unmistakably his. Even his clothes, which had higher defense than they looked, were torn in several places. If I were to strip him completely, there were probably more than one or two places with bruising underneath.
If this was the extent of what showed on the outside, the state beneath his clothes was obvious without even having to check. It was strange that he was standing there pretending to be fine like that.
While I was looking him over, he wore a briefly surprised expression before quickly softening around the eyes. The corner of his mouth had lifted slightly too — for some reason, he seemed to be in quite a good mood.
Shortly after, the dark energy that had gathered in his pupils disappeared. The black that had swallowed his right arm also vanished, as if it had never been there.
Ahem — Jeong Euijin gave a small, casual cough and looked down at me with concern.
“That’s what I should be asking. Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No, not at all. I just dozed off for a bit and woke up, that’s all.”
“If that’s the case, I’m relieved, but…”
He had looked momentarily reassured by my words, but then asked with a stiff expression:
“What happened? Why were you collapsed like that?”
“I’m not sure either. From the Minotaur Lord, along with the item…”
I paused for a moment.
It’s better not to mention the note.
If this thing was trying to control even NPCs, what Player couldn’t it control if it set its mind to it?
If that thing — whatever it was, administrator or NPC — was watching me from somewhere, there was no telling what it might do to Jeong Euijin if he ended up knowing too much.
Me being in danger and Jeong Euijin being in danger were two separate problems.
The safe line to draw is right here… that’s the smart way to look at it.
Jeong Euijin was the only Player who knew I was an NPC, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of telling anyone.
On top of that, he had already received a quest from me. Systemically, Jeong Euijin and I were connected through the medium of a “quest,” so that thing watching me probably couldn’t interfere recklessly.
We were still standing within the system’s rules, inside a “legitimate Player-NPC relationship.”
In order not to cross that line, I decided to hide the matter of the note.
“…Hm, I received the item, and after that I don’t remember anything. I fainted all of a sudden.”
This was mostly true.
In reality, I had received the item, checked the note, and then received a system message.
<For the smooth progression of the quest, NPC ‘Lee Jaea’ will be forcibly transitioned to a blackout state for 1 hour.>
A sudden blackout without any warning whatsoever.
There was no time to think, no time to react. My consciousness cut out in an instant, as if someone had pressed an off switch with their finger.
Was it because I interfered in the Players’ quest?
I couldn’t be certain why the blackout had happened, but it was probably because my presence had been an obstacle to the quest’s progression.
Well, if I’d been nearby, the Minotaur Lord wouldn’t have been able to fight properly either.
I was reasoning out the cause without much difficulty when I suddenly noticed that blood was dripping steadily from Jeong Euijin’s right arm.
On Jeong Euijin’s forearm, a deep gash was now plainly visible — one that had been impossible to see while it was stained pitch black.
I first rummaged through my Subspace bag and pulled out a soft handkerchief. It was the Healing Handkerchief — one so unnervingly soft that I’d find myself reaching in and running my fingers over it every now and then.
“I’ll give this back to you. I’m going to tie it around that arm for now — that’s fine, right?”
“No, that’s for in case you get hurt—”
“Then let’s say I got hurt and just use it.”
“But—”
Without properly waiting for his answer, I wrapped the handkerchief around his injured arm. Its durability dropped by 1 immediately, and the blood that had been dripping steadily came to a stop before long.
“Ended up giving this back to you sooner than I thought.”
“Pardon?”
“I figured we’d meet again in a few more days. Who could have known the Special Supply Station would just disappear like that?”
Jeong Euijin had been watching me quietly as I fixed the knot of the handkerchief, and he curved the corners of his eyes.
“…Even if the Special Supply Station had stayed, I would have come back right away.”
There he goes, smiling like that again — like he’s trying to bewitch someone.
“I would have gone every day to check. Whether you’d fully recovered, whether you’d gotten hurt again.”
“Do you think I go around getting hurt every day? Looking at you now, I think this should really stay with you.”
I answered bluntly and made no secret of looking him over.
“This is something else — the injuries just don’t stop.”
“Would you wrap a bandage around them?”
“Don’t you have potions? Potions are the way to go.”
“Of course I have pot—”
Mid-reply, Jeong Euijin suddenly rolled his eyes. Those pretty pupils swept once to the far left, once to the far right, then looked at me with complete seriousness.
“Unfortunately, all I have on me is bandages. Please wrap them.”
“Could you at least make a show of rummaging through your Subspace bag?”
“I rummaged in my heart. Bandages only.”
And then, with slightly rushed hands, he pulled out a heap of bandages and thrust them toward me. They were bandages with a modest healing effect — nothing compared to the Healing Handkerchief, but something.
They were a staple for Players who were short on Coins, so it was strange that someone as well-off as Jeong Euijin had nothing but these, without even a potion. Had he used up all his potions during the battle?
The fight must have been incredibly brutal.
Even with the stat buff from the quest I’d told him about, he’d been drained of every last potion — the Minotaur Lord’s combat strength must have been far greater than I’d imagined.
I glanced indifferently at the bodies of what were presumably Eclipse members who had fought alongside Jeong Euijin and fallen, then grabbed his arm and pulled.
“Come here.”
Jeong Euijin followed me quietly and obediently, like a large, well-trained dog. Even so, he absolutely refused to let go of the bandages in his hand.
I pushed Jeong Euijin into a nearby building and checked once more that no one was watching.
Through the cracked window, a wind carrying ash and dust swept by. The distant sounds of people still cleaning up after the battle drifted over faintly, but there was plenty of distance between us.
“Lee Jaea?”
“Stay right there. You don’t need the bandages anymore, so put them away.”
Leaving Jeong Euijin stubbornly holding on to his bandages behind me, I lifted the key attached to my bracelet.
<Special Supply Station, Zone 2 — Warehouse Key>
I opened the invisible door and walked into the warehouse packed full of all sorts of things. To Jeong Euijin’s eyes it would look as though I’d suddenly vanished into thin air, but since he’d already seen me use the key in his room, he probably wouldn’t be surprised.
I walked back out of the warehouse with an armful of expensive High-Grade Recovery Potions.
“Here, take these. Since I’m giving them to you directly, there won’t be any warnings, so don’t worry.”
“Oh, yes… thank you…”
Jeong Euijin took the potions I held out in a slightly dazed manner, accepting all of them.
I went back into the warehouse once more and came out holding yet another armful of potions, then jerked my chin at Jeong Euijin, who was still standing there with a disgruntled look on his face.
“What are you waiting for? You can’t take these out in front of people, so drink them up quickly now. For the worse external wounds I’ll apply it directly.”
I set the potions down on the floor with a clatter and uncapped them.
First, I doused the torn wound on his leg right in front of me, pouring the potion over it like a splash of water. For the places where the cut looked deep, I emptied two full vials, and even for the shallower wounds I poured an entire bottle without holding back.
After all, the potions would refill the warehouse again the moment midnight passed, so there was no point in being stingy.
I looked up with satisfaction at his now-clean lower half, and there was Jeong Euijin, drinking his potion with a gloomy expression. Why was he sipping it so daintily — anyone watching would think he was savoring a glass of red wine.
“Drink it properly. And put those bandages away, I said.”
“You never know. There might be wounds that even potions can’t heal… no, never mind.”
Jeong Euijin’s face was still sullen as he put the bandages away as I’d told him to. I’d given him potions — far more convenient and effective than bandages you had to wind on one by one — so why did he look so disappointed?
Five minutes later, the Eclipse members who had subdued all the now-scattered monsters appeared on the scene.
The sound of multiple footsteps and clashing weapons drew closer from outside. Someone’s voice could be heard calling Jeong Euijin’s name anxiously.
Thanks to my pestering, Jeong Euijin had downed every last potion before they arrived, and he looked perfectly fine without so much as a scratch.
…But why are you pocketing the empty bottles, you.
